Magenta
by thecoldforest
Summary: Kiyomizu Naomi was a normal teenager with a mostly normal life. At least, until she was told she wasn't normal at all. Now, with her only close relative dead, Naomi is sent to Cross Academy for "her protection" by an uncle she didn't even know she had until just recently. There, she discovers even more about herself than she ever wanted to. (New species OC)
1. Prologue-Hunter's pulled Trigger

**(A/N)**

**Hi there! Okay, so, I guess the only way to explain this one is to say that it is the prequel to Early Spring, which it basically is. The events that take place in this story do effect what happens in ES so...yeah. There's not as many OCs in this one, only a handful at the most, as there will be in Early Spring. Magenta also introduces a different...species, I guess, similar to the Purebloods but also entirely different. And I feel so guilty about writing this one right now 'cause I'm supposed to be writing chapter 2 for ES. Im still writing for ES but...writers block. **

Prologue

"Does this mean I'm your enemy now, Zero?" She really didn't know why she bothered asking such a thing when the answer was as obvious as the gun pointed at her head. Nearly ten thousand years old and she still didn't realize that just one act can ruin one's image of you, at least, not until just now. It was especially true with the silver haired Hunter in front of her. She was so stupid, now all her hard work at gaining his trust was finally going down the drain.

It was a still silence that wrapped itself around them, like the cold in the wind that passed through the naked branches of the surrounding trees, giving a sense that they were, at the moment, the only two on the planet. The Bloody Rose never wavered, nor did the piercing gaze of its master. He stared at her with guarded eyes that just barely contained the anger and betrayal, his walls once again sky high and she had no hope of climbing back up and over. Kiryuu Zero was looking at her the way she had always prayed he never would. In his eyes, she was now what she always knew she was-a monster. Or maybe that's all he ever thought of her.

_I'll be Kiryuu-san's ally, too..._

_You know you can talk to me, right, Zero? Even about...her..._

_ Kiryuu-kun is a kind vampire, so I'm not scared._

_Does it ever feel claustrophobic, Zero-kun?_

Naomi clenched her hands into fists at her sided but didn't break their eye contact. Not this time. She deserved to die by his hand.

"Well, Zero?" Ten thousand years was too long to exist, Kaname was right in that sense. She took a slow and deliberate step towards him, making sure that, no matter what, he wouldn't somehow "miss".

_Amy, Haruo, Ichiro, Hiroki..._

Names and faces, smiles and tears, memories, flashed by one by one. All the people she loved and let down.

_Juro, Asami, Etsuko, Chouko..._

She felt the sudden, strange urge to smile. Her life was really flashing before her eyes, like they said on TV it does.

_Kaien, Yuuki, Kaname, Aidou..._

"Hurry up." Naomi said, smiling at her lavender eyed friend. "Pull the trigger."

_Takeo, Zero..._

The Hunter's eyes widened a tiny, almost unnoticeable fraction but he never looked away. Never.

_Should I even bother asking for your forgiveness?_

He blinked once then, without hesitation, pulled the trigger.

_I'm so sorry._

**(A/N)**

**So...yeah, that was short. And it was more like an excerpt (sorta...? OTL). Little hints about what will happen in the future. I'm actually really proud of this one, so it might stay up as it is. Gah, I hate being so cruel to Zero. Damn, that boy seriously needs lots o' hugs and kisses. I would do it if I wasn't afraid I'd insult him. I just...*sobs into Zero plushie* WHY, HINO-SAMA?! *sobs more***

**Akemi: She's having another breakdown...**

**Naomi: It should also be know that, in this story, Kaname hasn't gone on a murder spree yet.**

**Chouko: So, review, please, and tell us what you think. Any criticism is accepted.**

**Nobu: Except the stupid kind.**

**Me: All of you, scram. None of you have been introduced in any story and some of you don't even belong on this side of the timeline.**

**Ai: Updates will come as soon as possible if anyone likes these stories. Thank you for reading!**


	2. Chapter 1- Fainting Robin

**If I can stop one heart from breaking,**

**I shall not live in vain;**

**If I can ease on life the aching,**

**Or cool one pain,**

**Or help one fainting robin **

**Unto his nest again,**

**I shall not live in vain.**

-Emily Dickenson

Chapter 1

Kiyomizu Hiroki woke to the sound of heavy rain tapping the glass of his bedroom window and smiled, ignoring the coppery taste in his mouth. He liked the rain, for no clear reason really. If someone asked, the answer would always be different.

_"It's refreshing..."_

_"It makes things grow..."_

_"Because of the rainbows..."_

_"Just because."_

Just because.

Some of his fondest memories were ones made in rain storms similar to the one outside his window. Spending hours outside, without a coat more times than not, splashing into puddles without shoes, no matter the temperature. Spending even longer in a bath afterwards getting clean again. Even better were the memories with his family, whole and healthy, not the broken one that existed now. It was just him and Naomi.

For a long time, the nineteen year old just stared out the window from his bed, sea green eyes empty of the emotion he felt inside as he looking over all the things he could remember, as his already high fever continued to steadily rise. His mother's kiss on his forehead. His father's hands covering his as he learned to ride a bike. His sister's, both Naomi and Chouko, waking him up early when it snowed. Happier times.

With no visibly apparent cause, the auburn haired man suddenly leaned over the edge of the smallish bed as a coughing fit overcame him, a warm liquid spraying the inside of his hand and dripped through his fingers, leaving crimson trails that stood out boldly on pale flesh. After what felt like an eternity to him, the fit passed, leaving Hiroki gasping for breath, collapsing back into the nest of pillows, and in an even worse state than before, both physically and mentally. He knew what was happening to him, knew the simple truth that so many faced with him today. Kiyomizu Hiroki was dying. It was so obvious to him that he wasn't going to put up much of a fight. Nothing could help him, after all, not even modern day medical technology. The doctors and all there tests couldn't ever find what had been wrong with him, nor what was going on inside him. They'd given him one year, at the most, based on his symptoms and his rate of degeneration. That was six months ago.

_Time's up, my friend._

Another fit tore at him just when he started to feel a bit better, this one with enough force that he tumbled to the floor when he leaned over his bed, not wanting to dirty the blankets with his blood. Agony flowed through Hiroki like a poison, demanding the oxygen that could no longer be deliveredto it. Then, slowly, so slowly, the fit died down, leaving every inch of him achy. Hiroki didn't bother moving anymore, he barely had the strength to keep his eyes open and keep breathing with whatever lungs he had left. Still breathing. It was an almost cruel thing now. But, he supposed, he couldn't just _stop_ breathing. His body would still make him do it even if he didn't want to. Would still do it until it finally shut down.

What was probably the cruelest in this situation though was that he had told no one of his condition. Nobody, not even his sister, knew that he was dying right now. He would probably never see her again, in fact. A hazy blackness had begun to grow around the edges of his vision and he couldn't feel his fingers anymore. Not much time left at all.

It wasn't fair for Naomi, he knew, but Hiroki could never bring himself to tell her on any of the many occasions he tried. It was selfish of him, too, he also knew that because, well...

He didn't want to see her cry for him over it. She had lost too much already and only was just beginning to recover from the blow that had left them both winded. She was only twelve when their parents and younger sister died in a fire that left nothing remaining. Now, at fifteen, she was going to loose the last thing she had left. There would only be _that_ man.

But, Naomi would get through it. Day by day, it would hurt a tiny bit less. She was so strong, and would only get stronger. She would find someone to take care of her, to be her shoulder to lean on when she needed it. Hell, she might even find _him_. But she would get through it. He knew because...

Hiroki exhaled and let his eyes close.

Just because.

The last thing he was aware of was someone calling his name and the rain, still tapping on the glass. _May I come in?_

* * *

"Akihiro."

_**No.**_

"Hiraku?"

_**Nope.**_

"Katsuro?"

_**No again.**_

"Oh come on!" the fifteen year old whined, poking a finger at the small pale purple flower growing alone in its own little pot. "Just a tiny hint? Please?"

_**No.**_

"Why not?" Kiyomizu Naomi put on her best puppy face as if it would get her what she wanted even though she knew from experience that it didn't. Still, it never hurt to try again. It was a very stubborn flower, the most stubborn of all that she had seen. But, then again, it was entirely possible that a bunch of other flowers were just as stubborn. She didn't know though as she had never had much of an extended conversation with others of the floral type. They all seemed much to…proud, with the exception of a shy few, whereas the one in front of her looked like it didn't even bother trying to impress anyone with vibrant colors and assorted fragrances both sweet and foul. This one that could always be easily overlooked was her favorite for just that reason.

Plus, it was interesting to talk to. Plants know many things. They just don't often share it.

_**Because there's no point, that's all.**_

Naomi's forehead collided with the glass tabletop with a loud bang, the vibrations enough to tip the solitary flower, which she caught with one hand before any unfortunate incidences could occur,

No point?

"The first letter then?" the brunette said, lifting her head up again with a pleasant looking smile that didn't even come close to reaching her dark eyes, oblivious to the giant red mark on her forehead. How could there be no point?

Since when did names not matter?

_**You won't give up will you?**_To her, the tone sounded slightly annoyed.

"Is that a yes?" Naomi asked, leaning back in her chair to look at the ceiling, taking not of how clean it was. _It must be nice to be rich._

_**Why?**_

"Hmm?"

_**Why won't you give this up? I just said it was pointless.**_

Naomi laughed gently. "That's a weird question." She said, leaning forward again so she was real close to plant, close enough where she could've made out its scent, wondering why it was familiar. "Even if you're a plant and seemingly insignificant, you still feel, don't you? Against what everyone says, it seems to me like you do." She smiled, poking the stem of her flower, watching it sway. "It doesn't matter to me what you are-be it a rock, a plant, a bug, a human, or a mythical creature, whatever- just as long as you feel _something._ If you feel, you exist and, by existing, you deserve a name to call yours and only yours." Naomi frowned. "There are thousands that share your real name, but that one's too complicated for me to even try an say."

The flower was silent and, after a while, Naomi sighed.

"Even if you don't want one, I'll find you a name for you. That way, you can be different from all the others like you." The brunette said, pushing back from the table, her chair sliding back, and stood. "I refuse to call any of my friends nothing."

Silence surrounded her like a blanket, slowly thickening with time, and the flower, all alone in its little pot, seemed to be nothing more than that again. The teen couldn't help but feel a little lonely

She sighed.

Maybe she was crazy.

Leaving the plant on the table, Naomi walked out of the room.

* * *

HIs eyes lingered on the names engraved on the stone, so worn that they were almost unreadable. Time, despite his best efforts, had taken it's toll on the ancient relic of a time long forgotten, the only thing besides his memories of al of them. Slowly, the man, nearly as old as those names, reached out with a gloved hand only to drop it again, letting his head hang.

_I'm sorry everyone..._

It turns out that he had been unable to protect everyone afterall. How foolish he had been to think that maybe...

_**I believe in you.**_

The man's gloved hand lifted to the center of his chest, to the ache that haunted him, and closed his eyes that glowed a soft magenta. He could still see her, he had not forgotten- never. His jaw clenched as the image of her smiling down at him flowed through his mind, as did the other faces of those surrounding her.

_**We believe in you.**_

They all smiled as they closed their eyes glowing a soft magenta, leaving him alone again.

Why did they have to leave him? Couldn't they remember that he hated to be left behind, hated being the last one?

A hand fell on his shoulder, the man's slumped body straightening as he turned and looked into the eyes of another person he had let down.

The two men shared a look before, turning their back's to the stone, walked away without speaking a word.

* * *

Naomi wandered aimlessly around the halls of the nearly mansion, bored, every once in a while poking her head through a closed door only to find another room similarily furnished as all the others she had looked in.

At the seventh door, the teen sighed. _How boring..._

She wished she could go home, wished that her brother would hurry up with his "business" because she, simply, missed his company. Not that this "uncle" of hers was a horrible person to be around, not at all. Naomi like the man well enough, it just creeped her out that he looked more like her brother than her real brother did.

Slowly, Naomi, stepped out of the room she just entered and closed the door, her head down, disappointed. What she wouldn't give to find something new in this giant of a house, big enough to fit at least twenty of the houses that her and her brother were living in now. that she had explored dozens of time over in the past two weeks. What she wouldn't give to find a n ew place to go, just for herself. What she wouldn't give to discover some big secret, like a dead body or something, just randomly placed somewhere she hadn't yet searched yet.

Well, she wouldn't give up Hiroki, that was certain.

Walking down the hall again, following a familiar path, Naomi hummed a little song that she ha always know but never know from where, her socked footsteps muffled in the thick carpet. She liked the carpet and the shocks she was able to give an unsuspecting Ichiro. The brunette smiled at the thought. Perhaps she should do it again?

_Yeah, why not?_

"Naomi-chan."

Naomi froze, just about to drag her left foot across the carpet as she took a step, feeling like a kid caught with her hand in the cookie jar. It was a silly thing though, since she hadn't done anything to get in trouble for.

Yet.

Turning, the thirteen year old smiled. "Why hello there, Ichiro-kun." She said in her most innocent sounding voice, folding her hands behind her back. _Me, evil plot? Never._

The man, Ichiro, for the first time, did not return the younger girl's smile. Instead, the lok that the black haired man gave her was that of both extreme sadness and extreme pity. Naomi would be lieing if she said that Ichiro's expression did not affect her because it did. Unnerving, it was. That expression, it did not belong on the face if someone with Ichiro's personality, someone who was always so...smiley.

Naomi frowned. "Ichiro-kun-?"

"Please, Naomi-chan," Ichiro said, cutting her off. "Come with me."

As he turned, walking away, Naomi hesitated for a second. Did she really want to follow?

She followed.

"What's wrong, Ichiro-kun?" She asked, having to walk fast, nearly jog, to keep up with the taller man and his longer strides. "Did something happen?" _No, nothing happened, he's just acting this way to mess with you. _Naomi knew, despite her inner voice's sarcasm, that Ichiro wasn't the type to play with emotions.

Ichiro did not answer, just looked straight ahead, almost determained. "Ichiro-."

"Haruo will tell it to you." Ichiro said, again cutting her off. "He can tell you better than I can." He looked down at the girl still struggling to keep up. "It'll be better if you hear it from him."

Naomi did not say anything to that and looked straight ahead as Ichiro did. Something happened, something bad if it was coming from Haruo, her uncle, with his sad, beautiful eyes and startling resemblence to her.

Again, the brunette wished her brother were here.

**(A/N) **

**Yes, Chapter One is finally done! Don't worry, we'll be getting into the VK-ness of things soon...maybe. It depends on how long I can keep my inspiration! **

**So, tell me what you think? Please?**

**-tcf**

**PS: I don't own Vampire Knight and...something else. Dammit, I forgot...oh well.**


	3. Chapter 2- Raining Sighs and Story Books

**(A/N) **

**So...here it is again. Sorry. I hated how it was written before. I made Ichiro look like an idiot, my poor baby TT^TT**

**Anyway, I only changed a few parts. The next chapter will be up this month sometime, too. **

Chapter 2

_Two Years Later..._

Naomi, sitting on a chair she had dragged from across the room, watched the rain fall from her brother's bedroom window, not really thinking of anything. All she did was watch...

Their-no, her- house was not big, nor fancy. It had only a few furnishings, the basics such as a bed in each bedroom and a table (not that that was all they had), and was sparce of decoration. Only a handful of photographs had decorated the walls in what passed for them as a living room, the only handful that had not been complely burned, but those, along with the beds and table, were packed away. There was nothing left in the house, nothing of hers, nothing of theirs, to show that anyone had occupied the house, save for the things in Hiroki's room. The things she had not touched since he died. She had told her uncle that she would be ready to leave when he got back but...

No, she had to do it. No longer could she just keep the door closed. This wasn't their-her- house anymore now. Better to go through everything than watch it all get thrown away. His books, his drawings, Naomi would keep those for sure. Everything else will have to wait.

But, for now, all the fifteen year old wanted to do was watch the rain fall...for just a little longer.

Out of the corner of her eye, Naomi noticed with partial interest that the flower, pale an lonely looking in its pot, seemed to lok out the window sadly, watching the rain fall as she did. But that was crazy.

It was just a flower after all.

* * *

_Everything seemed big-huge-to the small child clinging to the gentle hand of his mother, staring wide eyed at everything, taking it all in so he wouldn't forget, caught somewhere between awe and fear at the sight of the grey gothic achitecture, both fierce looking and strangly graceful. It smelled funny, the place they were at, too sweet yet slightly sour at the same time. The child had a hard time not wrinkling his nose at the scent because his mother told him before hand that it would be very rude if he did. With a strange, childish sort of determanation, the six year old put a clenched fist to his chest and exhaled, doing his best to ignore the funny smell. He wanted to make his mother happy and behave. If he behaved, Momma would smile and maybe, just maybe, she'll let him have an ice cream when they got home._

_Ice cream is essential for the growth of a healthy boy, afterall. That's what the flower told him._

_Now, with ice cream the end goal, the boy grinned up at the next person the two passed. She was a tall woman with dark hair twisted into a long braid that snaked down her back and, after giving his mother a scary look, simply walked on without returning a smile. Turning his head to watch the lady walk away, he frowned, wondering why she didn't smile back. Had he done something to make her mad? Maybe he shouldn't smile at this place; nobody else was._

_Such a sad, sad, place._

_Feeling his mother's hand tighten on his, the boy turned and looked up at her, a little surprised at the small smile that she was giving him, her pretty brown eyes starting to glow a faint purple-pink. Instantly feeling better, the child grined up at the pretty lady that was his Momma, tightening his grip in her hand in responce and moved a little closer to the woman who should smile a whole lot because it was soo pretty._

_Much, much better than ice cream..._

_"Hey, Haru! Haru, Haru!"_

_The shout was amplified by echoy stone walls and the silence, making the boy jump, startled, and froze, looking behind him again to see a dark haired boy running toward him, grinning and waving..._

The feeling of a firm on his shoulder enough to make the young man return to reality from the a past world trapt in his mind. Eyes going wide, the brunette blinked, leaning back a little bit, feeling slightly dizzy as he looked to his left at the dark haired man who just so happened to be the one who brought him out of his memory.

"Lost in LaLa land?"

The brunette just shrugged.

"Are you alright, Haruo-kun?"

Yano Haruo nodded at the straw haired man standing a little ways in front of both him in the dark haired man beside him, his hazel eyes looking a little worried behind ovular specticals. "Just lost in thought."

Straw haired man smiled, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "Your mother tended to do that a lot."

Haruo blinked once, his eyes suddenly begining to itch, before nodding again. Beside him, Takahashi Ichiro, the one beside him, sighed. "Is everyting taken care of now?" To whom the dark haired man was asking, Haruo didn't know. Instead if answering, he looked to the straw haired man who should know the answer to Ichiro's question as he had been the one talking for the past hour and a half about school policies as took them on a personal tour of the grounds (but, mostly, all he did was spout off about his "adorable" students...was this guy for real?). In turn, Cross Kaien, Headmaster of Cross Academy, just returned Haruo's look with a similar look of his own, waiting for Hauro to reply.

Haruo sighed. "Why are you looking at me so expectantly?"

* * *

Naomi's head hurt, feeling as if her brain had been wrapped in barb wire, used as a punching bag by a pro boxer, then placed back in her empty skull still wrapped in twisted metal. Physically, she knew it was impossible, as the brain actually felt no pain, but if it did, the dark eyed girl could guess that what she was feeling now was a pretty close apoximation.

If she were in a better state of mind, she would blame this all on Hiroki. It was his fault she was like this and, because she had no pride at the moment, would very much like to cry to him for his magic tea that he always made when she found herself in similarsituations. Tasting of mint and raspberries, the tea alway made all her aches and pains evaporate as quickly as they appeared.

It was a pity that he took the recipe to the grave with him.

Suddenly inhaleing, the honey brunette closed her eyes tightly, curling in on herself a little as a sharp pain stabbed through her chest, almost bringing out tears. Cruel. She shouldn't think like that, not about Hiroki. None of it was his fault, none what so ever.

Even if he did leave her alone.

_No, _Naomi thought, shaking her head. Not alone. She still had Uncle, didn't she? And Ichiro...

_Is that really any different?_

_Oh, be quiet, _She snapped at that annoying voice in the back of her mind. Sarcasm had a sister, and that was Doubt and they so did love to annoy her.

Standing from her chair, Naomi looked around her brother's room, her head hurting a little more. She had left it untouched, as Hiroki had left it with the exception of brown-red blood stained bed sheets. Ichiro had taken those before she could see, even though she saw them stuffed in the trash bin later on.

Sighing, the teen started the work she had been dreading for the past two years.

* * *

"I assure you, Haruo-kun, you have nothing to worry about!" The bespecticaled man practically sang as he twirled himself back into his desk, the long, school-wide tour finally over. "The Night Class is made up of completely well _behaved _and _polite _young people, and the Day Class is quite welcoming to new students." Resting his elbows against the top of his desk that definatly had seen better days, Headmaster Cross folded his hands together and smiled plesantly. "Any questions?"

Haruo met the eyes of the older looking man, feeling his eyes itch again, before shaking his head once. "No." He said, avoiding further eye contact, and stood.

"Excellent." Cross said, still smiling without standing. "When will she arrive?"

* * *

Naomi tried her best not to think as she began to pack everything of her brother's away in boxes and bags- some to be donated, some to be kept, and some to be trashed- she really did, but it just didnt work that way for her.

Her heart began to ache as much as her head when she came across his "favorite" t-shirt, the bright purple one with an neon smiley on it that her and her little sister, Chouko, had bought him for his birthday, several sizes to big so he could wear it forever. Hiroki, being Hiroki, smiled and thanked them with a smile and dutifully wore the shirt once a week with out fail.

It was only after it was just her and her brother that she realized how ugly the shirt was.

_Eh, throw it away? Why would I do that? It is, after all, my favorite._ He grinned at her then and Naomi, turning a little red, simply turned away from her brother, the only family she had at the time before Uncle came.

Stupid Hiroki. Folding up the sorry excuse of a shirt, she is about to throw it in the donation bag, as most of his cloths had found their way to, but, after a second's hesitation, through it in her keep stuff box that she wanted to take with her to her Uncle's. It wasn't good to cling, she knew, but she couldn't help it. Hiroki's disappointed look had flashed in her mind in that second. She hated that face. So, Naomi, being Naomi, would keep it for him.

It wasn't until she got to her brother's books and binders, the last things in the room, that Naomi actually felt like crying. She knew what was in those books, the stories and drawings that filled their once bank pages. Tales of princes and princesses, back when that was all Naomi and CHouko had ever liked to read about. Mysteries that kept you guessing 'til the end. Tragedies that had made her cry. She read them all, memorized every hand drawn illustration. He would've been great. He wanted to be great, wanted to be remembered forever, to make an inerasable mark on the world. A selfesh wish from a mostly selfless person. That was okay, wasn't it?

One by one, each book made its way into a box and, bit by it, everything Hiroki was disappearing from view. Such a sad, sad thing.

And, then, tired, her head still hurting, Naomi sits on the edge of Hiroki's empty bed and sighs. In her hands is the last book- The one that was almost complete, with the exception of one page.

* * *

In the peaceful place, a soft breeze blew, causing leaves to rustle and the high grass to sway. The sky was forever bright blue in this place, not a cloud so much as ever touched it's vastness. In the distance, the dull roar of an ocean could be heard. Somewhere, the other occupants of the peaceful place went about their own business, waiting for the last of them to return from the sad place. A long wait was there's but none of them minded.

In the shade of one of the many trees of the peaceful place, where nothing suffers, a man stirs from his slumber, zaffre tinted magenta orbs fluttering open slowly. Another breeze blew softly through, lifting the light strands of his pale hair away from his face gently before setting them down again. Blinking, the pale haired man lifted a tatooed hand that had been resting across his stomach and raised it toward the sky. Then, only slightly, he frowned, clenching the fingers of the raised hand slowly, as if he were grabbing at something.

"Wrong." The word felt foriegn on his tonge as it slipped past his lips before he could even think to stop it, bringing his hand down his chest. His heart beat slowly through the skin, muscle, and bone that protected it. So, so slow.

_It hurts..._

"Something's wrong." The man said softly, in almost a whisper, his eyes fluttering closed again.

And, as if nothing ever happened, Yano Takao drifted back to sleep again

* * *

** (A/N)**

**Gosh, so many OCs...and more to come. And I put the Headmaster in this...Yay? Nyaa, I wanted so bad to call him Kurosu Kaien, but then it would be Kurosu Academy, wouldn't it? It would get pretty confusing, I think, but I didn't want to call him Kaien Cross, either. So Cross Kaien it is. That is my story, and I have no clue why I just told it to you. Sorry.**

**See ya later**

**~tcf**


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